Police get edge on meth, data show

Cases on decline statewide but area statistics vary.

Cases on decline statewide but area statistics vary.

July 12, 2006|MIKE GILLOON Tribune Staff Writer

PLYMOUTH -- Indiana reported a sharp decline in meth lab raids last year, but three area counties report year-to-date numbers that fall on both sides of the statewide curve. Elkhart County had the most positive news to share. "We've seen just an incredible drop in meth cases," said Bill Wargo, lead investigator for the Elkhart County prosecutor's office. Meanwhile Marshall County authorities said meth discoveries are on par with 2005 numbers, when Marshall ranked fifth among Indiana counties in the number of meth lab raids. St. Joseph County, where the drug has been generally less common, reported a noticeable increase. The information comes on the heels of statistics showing statewide meth raids down significantly in 2005. After Indiana passed legislation last year regulating the sale of ingredients used to make meth, the state's Criminal Justice Institute said, meth lab seizures have dropped -- with 846 raids after the law was passed July 1, 2005, and 1,109 the fiscal year before. Wargo attributed the decrease in Elkhart County -- only five meth scenes so far in 2006 compared to 19 in 2005 -- to successful undercover operations and a good working relationship with other law enforcement agencies. Indiana State Police Detective Mark Senter said that in Marshall County -- where teams have responded to 23 meth scenes in 2006 -- a network of "30 to 40" people is responsible for most of the problem. "We're slowly trying to get as many of these people arrested as we can," Senter said. The rate is steady compared to last year, when units responded to 51 meth scenes all year. Meth teams responded to six scenes in St. Joseph County in 2005 but have already been dispatched to 13 this year -- including one Tuesday at a St. Joseph County marina where debris that results from meth production was found by the marina's owner, who called police. Capt. Robert Hammer, head of the Metro Special Operations Section in St. Joseph County, said the statistical increase in St. Joseph County could be the result of people who have been caught at meth-related scenes multiple times. He also commended the cooperation of local authorities with state police. State police investigators devote about 50 percent of their monthly meetings to meth work, Senter said. The effort is easy to see in Elkhart County's statistics, but Wargo said he is not ready to "jump up and down and throw a party" just yet. Meth isn't the only drug in northern Indiana. Many of the organized groups in Elkhart have switched to cocaine, Wargo said. Heroin and marijuana, as well, are present in Marshall County, Senter said. "Marijuana is the gateway," he said. "I've never been to a meth lab where there wasn't evidence of marijuana." Staff writer Mike Gilloon: mgilloon@sbtinfo.com (574) 936-1021